A recent area of concern is the increasing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by hostile adversaries. UAVs small enough to be portable (i.e. human-portable) are often termed miniature (mini) or micro unmanned air vehicles (mUAV, collectively). Such UAVs can be assembled from commercially off-the-shelf materials. A typical mUAV has a wingspan of less than or equal to about three meters, operates at altitudes of less than or equal to about five hundred feet (500 ft.), and can carry a payload of about 1 kilogram (kg) or less to about 30 kg. Electric motors may provide UAVs with acoustic stealth. Commercially available miniature flight control computers and sensors provide mUAVs with some degree of autonomy, mitigating the need for line of sight operation.
It is anticipated that inexpensive mUAVs may be used by adversaries not only for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), but also as weapon delivery platforms that may carry explosive, chemical, radiological, and/or biological payloads. Attempting to destroy mUAVs carrying such payloads makes possible inadvertent abetting of an adversary's mission. That is, conventional attempts to destroy an mUAV may not neutralize the payload, but may actually assist in dispersing chemical or biological agents over an area.
Alternative systems and methods for non-destructive disabling and control of a threat or hostile weaponized mUAV are desired.